The only job in Atlanta city government harder than being mayor may be running a campaign to become mayor.
It’s a months-long grind during which time serious candidates are under constant pressure to answer questions, take policy stances, appear at events, meet voters, raise money, shake hands, and kiss babies.
To give our readers a behind-the-scenes peek at how difficult and all-consuming mayoral campaigns are, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently embedded for a day its two reporters covering the campaigns of Andre Dickens and Felicia Moore — the candidates facing off in the Nov. 30 mayoral runoff election.
Reporters J.D. Capelouto and Wilborn P. Nobles III joined the candidates when they started their day, and hung right with them until they went home for bed.
What we found is that candidates always have to be “on.” There isn’t a moment during their days when they are not auditioning for the job. And on some days, the candidates must respond in real time to news events happening inside and outside of Atlanta — and those issues can test them in ways they could never have expected.
So please read our stories about a day in the life of these candidates, and see what it’s like to run for mayor of Atlanta.
ANDRE DICKENS: ‘I’m feeling that we’ve got the momentum’
FELICIA MOORE: ‘I’m just running 150 miles an hour’
You can also check out even more of our comprehensive coverage on the two candidates heading into Tuesday’s runoff election:
VIDEOS: Andre Dickens and Felicia Moore answer key questions
CANDIDATE BIOS: Andre Dickens | Felicia Moore
COMPLETE COVERAGE: The race for City Hall in Atlanta
